Family tragedy: mother murders her two daughters, commits suicide

Town of East Greenbush Police investigate the reported murder-suicide of a mother and her 6- and 9 year-old daughters at 58 Roserock Drive, in East Greenbush, N.Y., on Tuesday, July 1, 2014.
Mike McMahon - The Record

EAST GREENBUSH >> A woman and her two daughters were found dead early Tuesday morning in an apparent murder-suicide, after the mother told family she planned for the three to die in the same room her eldest son suffocated himself in April, police say.

Police said they responded to a call at around 1:45 a.m. from the woman’s brother, who lived in the house and heard the sound of gas escaping in the first-floor bedroom where the three were sleeping, but he could not break down the door.

East Greenbush Police Chief Christopher Lavin said Angela Mtambu, 47, and her daughters, Callidora Thurston, 9, and Eudora Thurston, 6, were found in the room, where nitrogen was released into a plastic garbage bag over their heads.

The victims were in grave condition and group CPR was performed was administered, said Lavin, until the three were transported to Albany Medical Center and later pronounced dead.

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“Despite the best efforts of all those responding agencies, the result is three fatalities,” Lavin said.

Rensselaer County Medical Examiner Michael Sikarica reported all three died of asphyxia due to inhalation of nitrogen gas, and said the mother intentionally exposed herself and her daughters to the gas.

Multiple metal containers of compressed nitrogen, which has medical and industrial applications, were found in the sleeping quarters. Police are investigating how they were obtained and brought into the house.

The gas affected the responders, Lavin said, but he has not seen or heard reports of injured personnel.

The tragedy mirrors the sudden death of Mtambu’s son, Mitchell M. Gwatida, 23, who suffocated himself April 1 in the same room at 58 Rockrose Drive.

A family member in Texas, where Mtambu was with her daughters, called police a couple of weeks ago to inform them Mtambu planned to drive to the East Greenbush home and intended for her and her daughters to die in the same room as Gwatida.

An Amber Alert was issued, and the family was intercepted by Pennsylvania State Police in Harrisburg, Pennsylvania.

Social services in Dauphin County took custody of the children and Angela Mtambu was confined there for 20 days.

On or about June 22, police say, she rejoined family in the Capital District and was seen by local social services representatives. Lavin said there were no court orders or orders of protection placed, and he was not aware of any parameters that restricted her interactions with her children.

On June 27, Mtambu was rejoined with her two brothers and the children at their home in East Greenbush. On June 29, Lavin said, Mtambu was allowed to sleep in the same room as her daughters.

Mtambu’s name has been on the property for 12 years, Lavin said. He said she was a travelling nurse and travelled extensively for work.

Mtambu worked as a nurse for the New York State Department of Corrections, said a co-worker.

According to an obituary in the Times Union, Mtambu’s son served in the United States Air Force from 2010 to 2013. He was born in Zimbabwe, moved to the Capital Region in 1997 and was a Columbia High School graduate.

“This case will remain open until all possible leads are exhausted or until the medical examiner issues a cause of death,” said Lavin.